This invention relates generally to the field of nametags and insignia and more specifically to a removable nametag or insignia and a method of attaching it that can be used with any type of uniform, or in any situation where it is necessary to display a nametag or an insignia.
Numerous jobs require a person to wear a nametag; a few of them are policeman, fireman, waitress, clerk, etc. Also, some jobs require a person to wear various insignia of rank or organization, among them are the military where members may have to wear rank insignia on shoulders and possibly campaign ribbons over a breast pocket. Traditionally, all of these types of tags or insignia are placed on the uniform or garment with a pin or a set of pins or posts that pierce the garment. There are two major types of prior art pins: 1) a long stick pin with a clasp such as found on clerk and waitress nametags, and 2) a pair of direct posts with squeeze clips that penetrate straight into the garment with the squeeze clips pushed on from the back side. Police and military nametags and insignia are typically of the latter class.
Both types of pin devices are annoying to the user because of the amount of time required to put them on, and both types eventually destroy the material of the garment since they make holes in the material. Stress in wearing the device usually causes the holes to enlarge, and numerous removals and re-pinings when the garment is laundered make new holes and enlarge the old holes. Also, the clasp or squeeze clip pushes against the person""s body sometimes causing rashes, red marks, and abrasions, or damaging undergarments. If a clasp comes open, or a squeeze clip works off, a person can actually be stuck by the pin causing a painful and possibly dangerous puncture wound. If the nametag or insignia accidentally receives a sharp blow, the clasp or squeeze clip can cause a painful welt. In addition, the clasp pin type of nametag is prone to come open and fall off, being lost without the wearer becoming aware of it. Also, such a clasp pin nametag is never straight vertical when it is worn, but rather tends to pivot about the pin causing the top to hang out and the bottom to slant inward. The hanging out top can get caught on things if the person tries to carry something or otherwise comes into contact with some other object. This can actually cause clothing to tear if the nametag is pinned on a shirt or blouse.
What is badly needed is a removable nametag or insignia that can be put on and taken off a shirt or uniform numerous times without damage to the garment (without making holes). This invention should contain no pins and should not protrude into the garment, thereby eliminating the possibility of wounds or bulges and of making any holes in the garment. The product should be strong and resistant to the tag or insignia pulling off or falling off.
The present invention relates to a nametag or insignia, usually, but not always rigid, that is attachable and detachable to a uniform shirt, dress, or other clothing. The tag or insignia can be constructed to have a panel of soft hook material on its back while the uniform or clothing can have a patch of felt-like or loop material sewed, or otherwise attached, in the position where the tag or insignia will be worn. The preferred hook and loop material system is sold under the registered trademark of VELCRO (VELCRO is a registered trademark of Velcro Corporation of America). Optionally, the present invention can use adhesive strips or any other means of attaching and detaching the tag or insignia to a uniform or clothing other than hooks and loops. Of course, the hook and loop parts of the system can be interchanged without affecting the operation of the present invention (the loops can be on the tag with the hooks on the garment).
In one embodiment of the present invention, a rigid nametag or insignia (for example military officer rank bars) can be made or converted to have no pins (it can be manufactured this way, or the pins on an existing device can be removed). A piece of hook (or loop) material can be glued, or otherwise attached, onto the nametag or insignia so that it is approximately the same size as the tag or just slightly smaller. The invention can be supplied with an adhesive surface opposed to the hook surface on this part. The adhesive surface can be covered with a peel-off protector for field use. The loop surface can be supplied to be either adhesively attached, iron-on adhesively attached, or sewed on to the uniform or garment, the preferred method is sewing. From then on, the nametag or insignia can be put on or taken off anytime desired simply by pushing the hook and loop parts together or pulling them apart. The present invention can also be supplied with only the tag hook materials so that different nametags or different insignia can be equipped to be put onto a garment with an existing loop patch. This way, people who need to change nametags or insignia can do so with no further modification to the uniform or garment. This is especially useful for people who might wear the same garment to more than one job in a day with the need to wear a different nametag or insignia on different jobs.